Ciel In School
by boxfish
Summary: Ciel Phantomhive is safe- For now. Sebastian has chosen not to eat Ciel's soul, and so Ciel will not age until either he dies, or Sebastian takes his soul- whichever comes first. 100 years later, Ciel rarely ventures outside of his mansion. Sebastian disapproves, and so it is decided; Ciel will attend school.
1. Chapter 1 Starting Point

**Summary:** **Ciel Phantomhive is safe-For now. Sebastian has chosen not to eat Ciel's soul, and so Ciel will not age until either he dies, or Sebastian takes his soul- whichever comes first. 100 years later, Ciel rarely ventures outside of his mansion. Sebastian disapproves, and so it is decided; Ciel will attend school.**

**A/N: I may switch back and forth between first person and third person perspectives between chapters... If that's ok...**

**ALSO**: **I wrote this before I watched the last episode of Black Butler II, and reading the manga. I'm sorry if things don't match up. .**

**POV: Sebastian**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Kuroshitsuji, nor its characters. Sebastian belongs to Ciel. :]**

* * *

**Ciel In School**

**Chapter One**

"No." His tone is final.

"Young master-"

"You know I'm hardly young, Sebastian. Now, make me something to eat. Preferably a parfait." The young master swiveled his chair 180 degrees, so that he faced away from me.

Relentless. If a Phantom butler is not capable at being relentless, he is not worth his salt. "My lord, you have taken not a step outside for approximately one- hundred years, seven months, three days, and six hours. Surely you must-"

Like the earl he is, he cuts me off shamelessly. "I hold no interest in the outside world, as I am competent at managing the Funtom Company from here." He takes a careful sip from his tea. "Furthermore, my days are filled with work. I've no time whatsoever for attending _school_, of all things." Ciel set his teacup down on his petite plate with a clatter. "I am perfectly happy here."

One hundred years, seven months, three days, and six hours have passed since the day I decided to refrain from taking my master's soul. My lord had been quite surprised when I had not killed him, though he was quite adequate at hiding this surprise. I suppose he had been expecting me to take his soul, as well as my leave. After all, I _am_ one hell of a demon. And this... Is particularly un-demon like, especially for a fierce specimen such as myself. Since I had not taken Ciel's soul, the contract was left incomplete. It is still my duty to protect my master, as well as obey all orders given out, at least until Ciel manages to die under my protection, or I eat him.

Neither of which is possible.

A demon who permanently enlisted his services to one soul is unheard of. I suspect I am the first to do so. There is no doubt that many look down upon me for this decision, especially that swine- headed Shinigami Will, though it is not to my attention.

I chose to have my cake, as opposed to eating it.

On the eve of my lord's sixteenth birthday, I staged his death. Ciel still possessed the body of a thirteen year old, mind you, and the occupants of London were getting wary. Rumors and such swam in the air, polluting it. My master and I decided this was best. His funeral had been an eventful one- Miss Elizabeth had been present, as well as her mother, the Phantomhive staff, and a ridiculous number of humans who had absolutely no connection to my master. I will never understand human traditions, though I am proud to admit that it was I, who cunningly suggested that Ciel disguise himself, and make an appearance at his own funeral. The disguise had been a dress and hair extensions, naturally.

Despite the fact that wearing yet another girlish garment had been a big blow to my young master's oversized pride, I expect that seeing his own funeral, his own death had helped him realize what was in store for him; A long, lonely future. This is the reason he never goes out; my master did not wish to create bonds with other humans in the knowledge that he will always outlive the others. In a way, every individual, every _friend_ that my master had succeeded to make will always leave him behind. I had become accustomed to the feeling. My lord had not, and did not care to be left behind, and so he did not interact with anyone outside of myself.

Even so, Ciel Phantomhive remained charitable child. Long after his servants had left his employment, he had more than once helped them out of a jam. My lord silently guided them throughout the remainder of their life, ensuring that they were living comfortably- Miss Elizabeth included.

I hold a fascination with him that no other human has managed to achieve. I would like to see him happy- not that he already isn't, but, I can tell that he is bored. Playing the game of managing the Funtom company is simply not enough. He needs more.

I knew Ciel Phantomhive had always had immeasurable pride. It was time to use this pride against him. "I had thought that my lord would be up for the challenge." My index finger rose to gently rest on my lip, tauntingly. "But it seems that I was wrong."

My young master bristled. "What challenge?" he snapped, before collecting himself. "Attending school is a trifle thing. There is nothing there to challenge me."

"Oh?" I injected just the right amount of disbelief into my voice. "Then what," I said, "is my young master afraid of?"

Ciel glared at me. I'm positive he was well aware of what I was doing: backing him into a corner. The smart thing to do would be to ignore my provocation. My lord is supremely intelligent, though his pride will win out. It always does.

"Tch," he scoffed. "When does it start?"

I beamed at him. His glare intensified tenfold. "Tomorrow," I replied, "At eight- thirty. Meaning you will have to wake at seven-o-clock."

He gawked. "In the _morning_?"

"Yes, young master." I made a show of checking my pocket watch. "My, my. It is already quite late. We should get you off to bed, now." I scooted him towards the master bedroom. "We wouldn't want to be late for our first day, would we?"

He frowned, but allowed himself to be escorted into the bedroom. Once there, I help him into his night clothes with care. "As your butler, I will take on full responsibility for the Funtom Company." Nimble fingers button up my master's collar. "In return, you will be able to shift your full attention to schoolwork."

"No need," he said smoothly, tossing his hair aside to reveal the glowing pentacle in his eye. "I am adept at multiple- tasking. And who said that I was to participate in every single day of school?"

"No one." I gently tuck him in and smooth down the covers. "I had assumed you would, considering you had nothing to be afraid of. It was a mistake on my part." The corners of my lips upturned on their own account, and he scowled most delightfully.

"Sweet dreams, my lord." I bowed deeply, and backed out of the room, shutting the double doors in my wake.

* * *

At approximately seven o clock am, I find myself standing over Ciel Phantomhive's sleeping form.

In truth, he is a measly five foot two – an inkling compared to my own six foot one. My lord, who is vertically challenged, has yet to occupy even half of the bed space. How unfortunate; he will never grow another inch.

I reach for his shoulder, and dutifully shake him to consciousness.

At once, his eyes fly open, and in the dim light of the Earl grey morning, I can see the glowing pentacle placed upon his eye. It's pink tint will never fade.

Hm. Pink. A suitable color for an Earl such as Ciel.

"What're you smirking at?" he questioned, his eyes flashing dangerously.

"We should play chess sometime," I offer, in an attempt to mislead my young master.

My lord eyes me suspiciously. "_Children are greedy when it comes to games,_*****" he recalled, almost sadly.

"Indeed," I replied shortly. I had never cared to dwell on the past...

After my morning duties, I find my young master waiting to go at the door. There seems to be a slight air of gloom in the atmosphere today, though I could _hardly_ imagine why.

The night before, I had faithfully prepared a bag of supplies that would be of use to my lord when the time came. Pencils, pens, and such were carefully packed away, and placed on my young master's thin shoulders.

"Are we ready?" I asked, with a cheerful, triumphant grin on my face. Instead of a mirror image of my grin, I was mercilessly gifted with senseless, incoherent mutterings, half of them most likely obscenities.

My young master, always the charmer.

Fifteen minutes later found us at the entrance to Medon Elementary School.

"What a befitting name," I mused as I pulled my young master's car to the front. Ciel looked over at me questioningly.

"'Medon'," I explained, "If you rearrange the letters, you get 'Demon'. It's quite the coincidence, my lord."

"Quite the coincidence, indeed." Ciel threw out carelessly. It was obvious he couldn't care less.

I stepped out of the car, around to the passenger side and politely popped open the car door, ever so devoted. We were getting a lot of double-takes. The car _was_ quite expensive- actually, it was more like a limousine, now that I thought about it.

Ciel hopped out onto the pavement, and adjusted his backpack, almost nervously, like a child. Smiling, I led him inside of the building with ease.

Since Ciel resembled more or less a thirteen year old, he was to take part in grade eight. Evidently, my young master was not pleased with this, and had explicitly demonstrated his unhappiness.

Grade eight, it seemed, was beneath him.

Ciel's teacher was a quirky woman, with slightly tangled hair, bags under her eyes, and oversized glasses to boot. I could tell my master had judged ill of her almost immediately when we entered the classroom- which was not necessarily a good start.

The moment we laid foot in the learning domain, twenty- five heads snapped towards our general direction.

All the students happened to be sitting in perfect rows of four by six. It was surely to be a catastrophically easy task if I were ordered to kill every last student in the classroom.

The woman approached me with small, timid steps, which, of course, I do not hold against her. I had most likely made her life that much more livable simply by walking into the room.

She spoke in a soft, tame voice. "H-Hello. M-My name is Ms. Mandel. W-Who might you two be?"

I bowed deeply. I was still wearing my butler uniform, so it was understandable that I might look out of place. Nevertheless, I was comfortable. Old habits die hard. "I am Sebastian Michaelis, the legal guardian of-"

Oh, dear. We had neglected to establish a solid name for the young master.

"Ciel Phantomhive," my young master supplied, "The third," he threw in ruefully, when I shot him a somewhat threatening look.

"Quite." I picked up where he left off. "I'll hope a lovely lady such as yourself might possibly excuse us for our abominably late registration."

"L-Late... R-Registration?" Ms. Mandel repeated, dumbfounded, a slight blush settling on her cheeks.

"Precisely." I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out a set of papers. "You will find all the compulsory documents here," I explained. "Ciel Phantomhive the... Third... will be included as part of your class."

Somewhere off to my left, young Ciel "tched" rather ominously.

Ms. Mandel adjusted her glasses. "I-I see..." she murmured after a moment. "W-Well, C-Ciel, you may sit at that desk there," Ms. Mandel gestured to one of the writing tables near the back of the class.

"Your kindness is astounding." I bowed once again, before turning to Ciel Phantomhive. "I shall see you at two- thirty, _my lord_." Said lord stared daggers into my solar plexus. "_Have fun_."

Smirking big enough for my young master to see, I swiftly exited the classroom.

Ciel's homeroom was, regretfully, on the second floor of the school building. For the record, I'd prefer not to climb buildings- it wrinkles my tailcoat, places a noticeable dampen on my hair, and my gloves will no longer hold the pearl- white shine that every basic butler should have. To blunt it bluntly, I detest it, though, there _are_ some times where it is worth the work. Take the present as an example.

To watch my young master suffe- _experience_ the joys of elementary school is, and will always be, priceless.

I'm on the windowsill now, looking in.

Ciel sits crossly on his assigned chair, scowling most wonderfully at every other student that dare steal a glance in his direction.

I can tell that he is having a blast.

Reluctantly, I draw my gaze away from my young master, as well as the window completely, and put myself out of sight, listening rather than looking.

"N-Now," I can hear Ms. Mandel saying, "I-I'm going to put you all in groups. Y-Your group will be responsible for sitting together during lunch. I-Is that clear?"

A chorus of "Yes'" resounded throughout the room. Unsurprisingly, Ciel's voice did not take part.

Ms. Mandel was talking again. "Y-You, you, and you will be one group. O-Ok?"

Curiously, I peered back at Ciel. His group consisted of members all significantly taller than him.

"I'm Finnie!" one of the children proclaimed brightly to my young master.

Finnie... A nostalgic name indeed.

"Finnie?" My lord closed his eye. "That's an interesting name," he said, without a trace of enthusiasm.

Finnie blinked. "What happened to your-"

"My name is Mey!" a girl with ridiculously sized glasses shook Ciel's hand eagerly. "It's nice to meet you, yes!"

Ciel made a face. "Mey. ? What a coincidence."

"I'm Barb," a gruff looking male muttered, a piece of wheat hanging out of his mouth.

Finnie, Barb, and Mey. Lovely.

"Who was the man with you?" Mey asked. "Was he your brother? He was very... Dashing, yes!" She sighed dreamily.

Phantomhive butlers, I had to remind myself, do not gag, no.

Barb snickered. "Heh. Give it up. You wouldn't stand a chance, believe me!"

"He is my butler," Ciel amended, fingering his blue gem ring. "And Barb is correct. You would not stand a chance," he stated flatly.

Oh? And how did my young master come to this conclusion?

"Oh... But... Why?" Mey asked. She looked almost hurt.

My lord smiled a bitter smile. "He's asexual."

... I most certainly will have to have a talk with my lord when he returns home. Contrary to popular belief, I _am_ capable of giving and feeling affection. An example? Cats, of course! What I would give to own a cat...

Unfortunately, my lord is not as fond of cats. He develops a most terrible sneeze when one is in proximity.

"Asexual!" Finne exclaims, "We should change that! We could throw a party for him, or something!"

Ciel smirked devilishly. "I doubt he would like that. But, by all means-"

"W-We have another new student in our class!" Ms. Mandel announced, and a blond boy clad in yellow jeans, and an extravagant t- short sauntered in.

"P-please join that group over there," Ms. Mandel said to the boy.

Something about this boy was vaguely familiar... It'd been a long time since I had come into contact with this particular scent, but there was no doubt about it. This boy is-

"Alois Trancey," the boy smugly introduced himself to Ciel's group. "The third."

How was this possible? Alois Trancey was a name that was scarcely mentioned around the Phantomhive manor. It was forbidden, to utter such a vile name. Absolutely banned.

Alois Trancey died, all those years ago. How was it that he had a son?

I stood perched on the windowsill. I had only a barren seventy- two knives hidden on various parts of my body, though it would be more than enough to kill none other than Alois Trancey III.

If he so much as laid a filthy hand on my master...

"I'm Mey!"

"Finnie!"

"Name's Barb."

"And you?" Alois addressed Ciel. "What's your name, _chibi_?"

My lord eyes flickered. "Ciel Phantomhive. The third," he added, after some thought.

I studied Alois' face intently for any sign of recognition, but thankfully, there was none to be found.

"Hm. I've never heard of _you_ before," Alois sneered.

I wanted to kill him. It seemed like Alois Trancey III was a much less dangerous figure than the original Alois Trancey, but one could never be sure. Until I consult my master with this, I will be forced to refrain from taking any brash actions. A Phantomhive butler, after all, does not put his master in jeopardy.

"A-Alright! N-Now that we're all aquainted, let's head to our first class; dancing!"

My young master's eyes widened in terror.

* * *

***Quoted from episode one**

**A/N:**** What'd you think? Let me know! :D**


	2. Chapter 2 A Diabolic Waltz

**A/N: I made up the math equation off the top of my head. :D**

**Oh yeah- updates might be a tad slower, because I dropped my iPod, and the screen smashed into a gazillion pieces. T_T Since I usually type up the stories on the 'notes' app, I'll have to find somewhere else to write my drafts. -_-**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own anythinggg. I don't make any money from this piece of work.**

* * *

**Chapter Two- A Diabolic Waltz**

**POV: Sebastian**

* * *

The Viennese waltz is one that I, exceptionally, excel at. Sadly, my lord is rather lacking in the foot-eye coordination department, and suffers daily an embarrassing defeat due to his... Disability.

This dancing class will certainly be more than an excellent opportunity to oversee my master's discomfort; it will be a lovely lesson specializing in humiliation.

* * *

**POV: Third person**

* * *

Sebastian watched as his young master was dragged unwillingly outside to the courtyard, where the dancing classes were held. The teacher swiftly grouped the glass into pairs, until all but two remained.

Unfortunately, both of them were of the same gender.

Ciel eyed Alois the Third warily. There was absolutely no way in Hell that he'd willingly agree to _dance_ of all things, with this nitwit.

Ms. Mandel approached the mismatched pair apologetically. "A-Alois, Ciel," she teetered, "I'm sorry, but you two will have to-"

"No need to apologize, Ms. Mandel," Alois interjected effortlessly. "We'll manage."

"T-Thank you, Alois. C-Ciel, why don't you play the part of the female in this dance, since you're shorter? I-I hope you don't mind..." Ms. Mandel trailed off nervously.

Ciel gritted his teeth. He'd like to think that he was strictly masculine, and it was torture to have to tolerate playing the part of a woman. Honestly, he'd quit this abomination of a school if it weren't for Sebastian. His stickler of a butler was sure to tease him to no end if he gave up because of... _dancing._ "... It won't be a problem," he muttered sourly.

The teacher looked relieved. "E-Excellent!" She addressed the class. "N-Now, we will start with the simple Viennese waltz!" And without further ado, she clicked down the power button to the portable CD player, which blasted traditional waltz music throughout the yard.

Alois easily slipped his hands downwards to firmly rest on Ciel's skinny waist, a mischievous smirk on his lips. Ciel, in turn, barely stifled his squawk of protest in time.

From high up above, Sebastian was torn between chuckling at his master's feeble attempts to keep pace with the class, and brutally murdering Alois Trancey the Third. He watched, with faint amusement, as Ciel failed to execute a turn, instead losing his footing, and stumbling backwards, miserably dragging down Alois as well.

Defiantly, the blonde boy sprang back up onto his feet after more than a few curses, yanking his partner with him. In no time, they were back at it once again. Under Sebastian's watchful eye, the pair more or less danced- no, it was more like awkward swaying- for about ten minutes or so. It might've been his imagination, but the butler could see Alois' hands slowly slipping lower with each passing moment.

Any lower, and he'd be forced to kill the Trancy boy here and now...

"Ciel!" a horrified voice announced.

The Earl glanced up at the sound of his name. Ms. Mandel appeared to be in the midst of rushing towards him with a distraught look plastered on her face.

"Ciel, you're dancing is absolutely _horrid_!" she cried, obviously distressed.

Ciel blinked in surprise. For one, Ms. Mandel had lost her stutter, and two, he had honestly thought his dancing hadn't been _that_ bad.

The teacher inhaled deeply. "Alright, try again. Repeat that step. No- no! It's all wrong! Again. Okay, okay, now _turn_- Not like that, like _this_! Ciel, look up while you're dancing- don't stare at your shoes!" she sighed in exasperation.

"If I look _up_ while I'm dancing," Ciel retorted in between Alois' uncontrolled fits of giggles,"I'll kick him in the shins- or possibly a bit higher, if he doesn't _quit his laughing_."

This, of course, only propelled Alois into another round of hysterics. "Ah," he grinned, wiping tears from his eyes, "You're so _cute_, Ciel."

Ciel visibly flinched, and smacked away the hands that had been hovering threateningly over his waist. "Unhand me," he ordered in a cold tone before turning to Ms. Mandel. "I wish to sit out this activity. I'm not feeling all that well."

Something in Ciel's steely gaze made Ms. Mandel think twice before answering. In less than half a second, the thirteen year old's expression had flickered from hut barely tolerating to over- the- border dangerous. Refusal promised Hell from this child for the rest of the school year.

The corners of Sebastian's lips upturned as Ms. Mandel nodded understandably. "C-Certainly. Y-You may sit over there, if you'd like, Ciel." Her stutter returned.

Without a word, the earl stalked over to the suggested spot, and thoroughly inspected the patch of grass that he was to sit on for specks of dirt before gently lowering himself down.

He lazily observed the rest of the class as they continued on without him. Alois was now dancing with Ms. Mandel, and he didn't see his hands roaming all over _her_ ...Person. Tch. So he was on _that_ side of the fence, eh?

Leaping down from the school roof, Sebastain landed without a sound. With untraceable footsteps, he came to a stop just behind the shadows, silently observing his master sulk on the small piece of nature. It was time to pay the earl a visit. "... My lord."

Ciel jumped, and spun around, spotting Sebastian lingering just at the edge of the trees, partially hidden from sight. Cautiously, he gathered himself up and approached his butler.

Glancing around to make sure no one had noticed his absence, he asked, "What're you doing here? You could get caught! No, wait- I should be asking how _long_ you've been here. And don't sneak up on me like that again, Sebastian." Sebastian only stared. "Well? Aren't you going to answer my question?"

"...Me?" Sebastian feigned innocence. "I am simply checking up on my master's well- being. Speaking of which, how do you fare?"

"Peachy. Now answer my other question," he snapped.

"Yes."

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, as in I answered your question."

Ciel pause for a moment, mentally scrolling up and rereading the conversation. "Screw you!" he decided. "Let me rephrase the question; how long have you been here?"

"Here, as in existence, or here, as in terms of sanity?" the butler questioned.

"Don't be tedious- Just answer my question!" he grumbled, taking in Sebastian's face. Upon noticing the slightest hint of a tell- tale smirk nearing the edge of his lips, Ciel suspected the worse; Sebastian had indeed seen his dancing.

"I have been in the vicinity since the start of your school day," Sebastian admitted, securing Ciel's suspicions, and bowing his head as an offered apology. "Does that not bother you?"

"You are my butler, not my stalker," Ciel muttered. "Know your place."

"My duty as your butler requires me to watch over you at all times. Think of this as a... precaution."

"Your precaution is going to raise questions! Besides, I can take care of myself without your help."

"Your immortality is only active in the aging department," Sebastian pointed out, "not anything else. Meaning, if I may be so bold, you get fatally shot, you will still perish, despite your supposed perpetuity."

"Cie~llllll!" Mey's unwanted voice rang out from the courtyard. "Where are youuuu?"

"Fine," Ciel bit out in a hushed tone, "You'd better not get caught. If you do, I will no longer have to attend this disastrous school. Understood?"

Sebastian bowed deeply. "Yes, my lord."

Ciel spared his butler one last warning look before turning on his heel and stalking away.

* * *

Once the student body was safely tucked inside their homeroom, Ciel allowed himself to breathe. He'd been half- expecting Sebastian to show up and interrupt the class.

"N-now that we're all settled, we'll be starting math!"

Math? This should be a breeze. There was only one definite answer, anyways. All there was to it was adding, subtracting, dividing, or multiplying the numbers. It couldn't get easier than that, right?

Ms. Mandel stood facing the whiteboard, and wrote using a dry- erase marker with quick, neat strokes. Stepping back, she proudly took in her work.

Ciel gawked. This... Was not math. It was more like English, what with all the letters and such.

**3 (X+Y)(5+Z) -(156-Y) + (XY+YX+ZX) = 782**

_What is Y?_

What is Y, indeed. Ciel had no idea where to start with this monster of a math problem. Way back when, math equations like this one hadn't even existed. If he concentrated hard enough, he could almost hear Sebastian laughing at him...

On instinct, the earl snuck a brief look at the windowsill, just to be safe...

And sure enough, Sebastian could be seen perched on the sill outside of the classroom on the second story.

Idiot!

"Get down!" he mouthed, and pointed towards the ground. Like the Hell of a butler Sebastian was, he cupped one hand so that it outlined his ear, and quirked one of his eyebrows, pretending he suddenly had a lack of hearing skills.

Ciel exhaled loudly. Normally, he would order Sebastian away, but to do that, he'd have to say what he wanted out loud, while revealing the pentacle on his eye. Even if Sebastian pretended not to hear the Earl, if he was in earshot, he'd be forced to obey.

Since the thirteen year old happened to be sitting rather close to the window, he leaned as close to the glass as it allowed him to, eased off his eyepatch, and whispered, "Get the heck away from here!"

Sebastian's grin only grew wider.

Ciel scowled with murderous intent, and quickly took in his surroundings, making sure no one had noticed the rogue butler at the window.

"Hey! Leave! Now! This is an order!" he yelled, in the most hushed tone he could muster.

Still no effect.

Would it work if he wrote it down?

Ciel flung open his binder, and hastily scribbled down the order.

_SEBASTIAN, THIS IS AN ORDER. GET OUT OF HERE, NOW._

Satisfied, Ciel hoisted up his chicken scratch to the window, effectively putting his order on display, only to find that Sebastian had his gloved hands firmly fitted over his eyes, that coy smile still etched in its place.

"Bastard!" he hissed in frustration. "Sebastian! Listen here, you-"

"C-Ciel!" a voice rang out, "Who are you talking to?"

Ciel snapped towards Ms. Mandela who was peering at him in what appeared to be concern, along with the rest of the class, "I was talking to-" he came to an abrupt stop, catching himself just in time. "No one," he muttered. "I was talking to no one."

Discreetly, Ciel shot a glance at where Sebastian used to be. The demon was nowhere to be found, naturally, though he could hear light laughter sifting softly through the air. Or maybe that was just the rest of the class, finding pleasure in his discomfort.

"A-Alright," Ms. Mandel said, though she still looked concerned. "C-Can you come up to the board, and solve this problem, then?"

Damn that butler! Now, thanks to him, he would lose even more face.

Ciel took his time in making his way up to the board. No matter which way he looked at it- he couldn't make heads nor tails of that useless, modern, state- of- the- art, I'm- going- to- screw- with- your- head- as- I -please math equation.

He had now been staring at the board for quite some time. "I'm can't do this," he grumbled to his teacher. "Apologies."

"C-Ciel." Ms. Mandel patted his head affectionately while handing him a single white card. "M-My psychiatrist's number is on this card. I-If you see any more scary things, call the number, ok dear?"

The class burst into laughter.

Instead of answering, the earl turned away, and glared at the window.

* * *

Ciel glowered at every living thing that moved.

To say he was angry was an understatement. No, he was _pissed_.

And when Ciel Phantomhive is pissed, you run. Because he, without a doubt, would not hesitate to call on Sebastian, who would gleefully rip to pieces anyone who got in the way of his master.

But when Ciel Phantomhive gets pissed at _Sebastian_... well, you get out the popcorn.

It's a different story _entirely_.

While waiting outside for Sebastian to come pick him up from school, he thought of all the ways to brutally eviscerate his butler in the most painful way possible...

"Ciellllll!"

The young Earl turned at the sound of his name, just as Alois Trancy the Third made a leap for him, knocking the smaller boy to the ground.

"Gerroffame!" The order came back to Ciel's ears distorted. Some sort of... Hair… Seemed to be wedged in his mouth.

"I knew it!" The blonde crooned, relieving some of his weight off of the Earl, though he still remained pinned on top of him. "I knew you were just like me!"

"What're you saying? Get off!" Ciel gathered his strength, shoved the taller boy off of him, and rolled to his feet.

Alois only laughed, and flipped his hair. "You're crazy, you know? Like me. It's been a _looooong_ time since I've met anyone like you." He suddenly stiffened, and glanced over his shoulder at a sleek black car lingering by the curb. "I've got to go." Alois, in an act of bravery or idiocy, swooped down and pecked Ciel on the cheek. The young master was too surprised to speak.

"I'll see ya later!" the blonde chirped, and with a wink and a wave, he was gone.

"What the _Hell_?" the little lord snarled. Dammit, he'd been caught completely off guard! Never in a million years had he been expecting that!

Wrinkling his nose, he used the back of his sleeve to rid himself of the Alois spit that still lingered on his cheek.

Disgusting.

"Oi! Ciel!"

Ciel bared his teeth, and spun to meet his foe. "What?" he snapped, expecting another dimwit planning to pounce on him, and gift him with another slobber on the cheek.

Or worse, on the mouth.

"Hey! It's me, Finnie! Remember?" a voice peeped.

"What do you want?" he replied warily.

Finnie casually slung an arm around Ciel's shoulder. "Oh, nothin'. Listen, if those hallucinations ever bother you again, just call on me, and I'll beat 'em up for ya!" He slammed his fist into his palm to emphasize his point.

Ciel studied the other for a moment. How should he respond to that? If this boy was anything like the original Finny, a harsh brush off would send him away in tears. On the other hand, a smile and a 'thank you' would only set an expectation for a smile and a 'thank you' each time, plus, it would encourage the boy. To be neutral was the safest counter- reaction, probably.

"I appreciate your offer," he deadpanned, "but I can handle myself. After all, if I depend on you to protect me each time, I won't learn how to defend myself."

Finnie's eyes filled with tears.

_Crap,_ Ciel thought, in panic, _Have I gone too far?_

"CIELLLLLL!" Finnie cried, using the earl's shoulder as a napkin. "YOU'RE SO BRAVE! AND SO TRAGIC! YOU'RE LIKE... YOU'RE LIKE... THE LITTLE BROTHER I NEVER HAD! OH, CIELLLL!" Finnie's sobs continued, along with incoherent mutterings.

Feeling a little lost, Ciel hesitantly patted Finnie on the back. "Listen," he said, as gently as he could manage, "I've got to go... Er... I'll see you tomorrow?"

Finnie nodded, and Ciel hurriedly detached himself from the other boy, quickly shuffling away, to safety.

"Bocchan."

Ciel frowned. The only one who would say that would be...

"Sebastian!" he hissed, "We need to talk!"

With a barely concealed smile, Sebastian bowed. "Yes, my lord. In the car, perhaps?"

The Earl somberly nodded, and approached the car, yanking the door open without waiting for his butler, leaping in like it was the end of the world, and slamming it shut with malice.

Sebastian, in contrast, gloated over to the automobile, gently pried the door open, folded his long legs into the front seat, and quietly coaxed the door closed.

"What is it you wanted to confide in me, young master?" the demon asked politely. "Seat belts, please."

"_You_," Ciel snapped, voice filled with venom, "made my day _absolutely _miserable. Why the devil would you spy on me during my lessons? No- stop _laughing_, Sebastian! I can see you! Furthermore, when you pulled off that _stunt_ during my math class, I couldn't concentrate on my work, for fear that you would dance off the windowsill and crush someone! And when you suddenly decided to disappear, the whole class thought I had gone daft! Was that your intention? To downgrade the name of the Phantomhives?" Ciel paused to take in a shaky breath. "Never," he said firmly, "Never again will you breach a one hundred meter radius around the school. Am I understood?"

Sebastian smirked. "Yes, my lord." My, my, what an imp his young master was. Really, he'd only been trying to ease the earl's boredom, and {this} was his show of gratitude? By tomorrow, guaranteed, the demon would find a way around his master's orders. Oh, yes, he needed a challenge once in a while…

"I'm glad we settled that," Ciel huffed, turning away. "When we get home, make me something sweet to eat. Parfait, most preferably."

Sebastian started the car. "I assume this indicates you will be attending school tomorrow, my lord?"

Ciel stretched out, like a cat. "Who do you take me for? A Phantomhive is not one to give up easily. Besides," he added with a yawn, "I'm certain school will be that much easier now that you're out of the way."

Sebastian smiled. There was only one thing left to say. "Yes, my lord."

* * *

**A/N: Yaaaaaawn. So... Drowsy...**


	3. Chapter 3 Surprise Guest

**A/N: THE STORY RATING HAS CHANGED TO T!**

**DISCLAIMER:**** Don't own. Don't sue.**

* * *

**Ciel In School**

**Chapter Three- Surprise Guest**

**Pov:**** Third Person**

* * *

"Have a good day~"

From the moment Ciel left the car, he was suspicious. Sebastian almost _never_ spoke to him in that cheerful, upbeat tone unless the demon was up to something. But what? And how? Ciel had made it very clear on what his orders were. The demon was, with no doubt, banned from the school grounds, and Sebastian had yet to disobey any of the earl's orders.

But then again, there had to be a first time for everything.

Ciel readjusted his knapsack- which felt oddly light today- and stepped into his classroom. He slumped down at his desk with a sigh. At least he didn't have to think of an excuse to abstain from dance class. That seemed like the sole bright spot in his day, although on the more darker side, he had math. Every. Single. Day.

How long had it been since he'd last done arithmetic? His English and French remained excellent- Sebastian had seen to that. Heck, for a decade or so, the butler had only spoke to him in French! That had been one of the more morbid periods of his life.

Art and music were satisfactory. Ciel supposed he could paint a pretty picture if he'd really tried, but he had never exactly put his heart into any his paintings, and so they never turned out that great. The violin was OK. The earl and the instrument were on neutral terms, on which Sebastian deemed passable.

It was just math and dance that messed him up.

"A-Alright now, we'll be starting off the day with math!" the teacher announced.

Ciel buried his face in his arms. God, he hoped this day would go by fast.

By the time lunch rolled around, Ciel was in shambles. He hadn't understood a thing during math

"I don't get how you don't understand!" Bard exclaimed while they were putting their math textbooks away. "It's so easy! We learned how to convert fractions to decimals in grade one! Where have you been the past seven years of your life?"

"I just forgot some stuff, that's all," he muttered. The boy was sick and tired of people scolding him for not knowing some of the basics of math. So what, if he had neglected the real world for a century, or so? The world changed so quickly. It was useless to try and keep up.

"Hey, Ciel!" Alois called from the other side of the room, "What do YOU have for lunch, huh? I have... Chateaubriand!"

Ciel bristled. So this was a competition, was it? Well, knowing Sebastian, the butler had probably come up with something even more extravagant.

He tore through his bag, searching for his blue polka- dotted lunch bag that had been there the day before. Ciel took his textbooks, binders, and his pencil case out of the knapsack, but to no avail. His lunch was simply not there.

The earl frowned. This couldn't be right... Sebastian _always_, no matter the situation, had lunch prepared. There was no way his butler could have forgotten his lunch, unless he did it on... purpose...

Oh.

So, that was the demon's plan, was it? Sebastian was going to try to starve him out, was he? The immortal had probably thought that he'd get _so_ desperate for nourishment, that the earl would give in, and call for his butler to come to the school with his lunch.

_Ha._ Like he'd fall for that. What'd Sebastian think of him? That he was some sort of child, or something? There was no way in Hell that he'd go running to him. After all, it was only one lunch he was missing. He could endure.

"Don't have a lunch, Phantomhive?" Alois' taunting tone floated through the air. "Heh. Looks like your butler let you down!"

Back at the Phantomhive mansion, Sebastian looked sadly at the abandoned blue polka- dotted lunch bag, lonely sitting on the kitchen counter. For today's lunch, he had prepared roast of lamb, with a balsamic reduction. Just as his master liked it. It was a shame that his young lord hadn't called him yet. According to his pocket watch, lunch had started fifteen minutes ago. Normally, he wouldn't resort to depriving his young master of his lunch, but certain circumstances required desperate measures.

The demon stepped outside, taking the lunch bag with him. At the moment, it was twelve- thirty. She should be coming right about... Now.

The sleek black cat stepped out of the shadows, and stretched languidly, showing off her flexible body. Sebastian reached for her, taking hold of the cat's delectable paws and soft fur.

When he really thought about it, cats reminded him of Ciel. He might've been refered to as the 'Queen's Guard Dog' back in the late 1800's, but he was more of the feline division. The boy was small in size, and possessed plenty of spitfire. Now all he needed was a pair of ears, and a tail...

Sebastian smiled as he granted the cat one last stroke. "I have to go now," he told her gently, "I must look out for my young master."

The butler stood and watched as the kitten scampered away, before drawing out of his pocket a cellular device. He casually flipped through his contacts until he found _the number_. It was a good thing that his master was blissfully unaware of the fact that he possessed a cellphone, lest, god forbid, the inquisitive young boy stumble across _the number_. He was ashamed to even have such a person saved on his phone.

Sebastian dialed _the number_, and waited. No more then a mere second had passed before his call was answered.

"I need a favor," he said.

* * *

"You can have some of my lunch!" Mey offered brightly, holding out half of her sandwich.

"I'll be fine, thanks," Ciel replied politely, turning her down immediately. His stomach growled its disagreement. He shushed it by swallowing down some water.

Bard, Mey, and Finnie had each offered him a portion of their own lunch, and he'd turned all of them away. To put it short, the earl hated being in debt. He didn't like to owe people anything- that way, he wouldn't feel obliged to help them out in their time of need.

Damn that demon! He was hungry, dammit! And if he died of starvation, the blame would be placed squarely on Sebastian's shoulders. Maybe he should start to write his will...

"Attention, students." The voice came out of the speaker in the ceiling. "We have a CODE RED, I repeat, we have a CODE RED. This is not a drill. Teachers, please take all necessary precautions. We will make another announcement when the area is clear."

Ciel glanced around, confused. What the Hell was a code red? Why was everyone panicking? Did Sebastian have anything to do with this?

"E-Everyone!" Ms. Mandel waved her arms. "O-Over here, by my desk! K-Keep quiet and stay still!

The student body obediently shuffled forward, Ciel included. The teacher shut off the lights with a flick, and hurried over to join them.

Through the dim light leaking in from the windows, he could make out a vague impression of Mey, Bard, and Finnie. As time passed on, he slowly watched their forms become clearer and clearer, until his eyes completely adapted to the dark.

The whole class jumped when the sound of high heels from out in the hallway could be heard swiftly clacking its way closer, until it came to a rest just behind the closed classroom door.

"What is _with_ this goddam place?" A muffled voice could be heard through the door. "Why are all the goddam lights off? Tch. Typical humans. Oh! Room number 112? Perrrrrr~fect!" The intruder jiggled the knob. "HEY! Open this thing! It's locked! Don't keep me out in the cooooollllllld..."

No one made a sound.

"... You know, I know you guys are in there. There's no point in hiding!"

Still nothing.

"Ohoho. Fine! Be that way. All the more fun for me!" A buzzing sound ripped to life, and several terrified shrieks resounded throughout the room. Ciel himself had froze. Was this Sebastian's doing? Was the demon betting on scaring the earl into calling him? If so, he wasn't giving in THAT easily, certainly not. Or could this be an actual infiltrator, come to kill everyone in the school? In this case, he'd happily call on Sebastian. But for now, it was best to wait it out. If he was in real trouble, would Sebastian still come even though he had been ordered away?

In no time at all, the classroom door feebly burst apart, falling flat on it's face. A black booted foot stepped onto the defeated door, claiming victory. When the dust cleared, a slim figure could be seen, clad in oversized earrings, expressive glasses, and skin- tight leather, complete with red flaming hair.

Oh _no_.

"Oh, _yes_." The shinigami struck an elaborate pose. "This is Grell Sutcliffe, the _ripest of the reapers_!"

* * *

"Grell?" Ciel gaped in total disbelief. "_What are you doing here?"_

Upon seeing the earl, Grell rushed forward, and bombarded the boy with kisses. "Oh, Ciel! My boy! My baby!"

Ciel jumped out of his skin. "What the- get off!"

Grell retreated backward several steps. "My, my. Aren't you a feisty one. Mmmm. I like."

"You lech! Don't touch me! Why the Hell are you here?"

"Ahh, you see..." Grell flipped his hair. "Sweet, sweet Sebas-Chan asked me to deliver this to you." A blue lubchbag swung from his fingers. "Of course, services of a Shinigami never come free, so in return, he promised me a biiiiiiig smack on the mouth. With tongue!" He licked his lips with relish. "Oh. I also have to put on a show."

"A show?" Ciel eyed Grell suspiciously.

"Honey, not _that_ kind of show." Grell waved him away. "You're much too young for that! When you're older, maybe."

Ciel felt sick. "No! Just leave! You've delivered my lunch, you can go and collect your kiss now!"

Grell looked somber. "I will budge for no man's pleasure, I."*

"E-Excuse me." Ms. Mandel looked frightened. "D-Do you know Ciel?"

The reaper grinned, displaying his pointy teeth. "Why yes! Don't you know? I'm Ciel's mother!"

Ciel blanched. "What."

"...M-Mother?" Ms. Mandel looked dubious.

"Yes, yes! Sebastian Michaelis is my husband... Mmm. Do you know him? Hard abs, tousled hair, an out of proportion, hard as anything c-"

"M-M-Mom!"

Grell's smile grew. "Yes, dear? Oh, you're father told me to take you out of school for today. You've got a doctor's appointment lined up today, mmhmmm."

"W-Wait!" Ms. Mandel protested, "You can't just-"

Grell revved up his chainsaw. "Problem?"

Ms. Mandel meekly backed down. "N-No..."

The shinigami was all smiles once again. "Good! We'll be going now!"

"J-Just a moment!" Ms. Mandel raised her hand. "M-May I talk to Ciel in private?"

" certainly! Oh, I have an announcement." The grim reaper addressed the class. "If any of you mess with my Ciel..." He raised his chainsaw. "I'll kill you..."

The class gawked.

"That's all!" Grell said cheerfully.

"...O-Ok then, Ciel. O-Over here." Ms. Mandel nervously led the boy into the hall.

"Yes?"

She fidgeted."I-I guess I'll be blunt. I-Is your mother ok?"

Ciel gave her a flat look. "Yes. My mom is just a little... Confused, that's all."

The teacher gave him a long, searching look. "A-Alright, then. Y-You'll call me if you need anything, won't you?"

"Yes."

"Y-You may go."

"Ready, my son~?" Grell stood leaning against the doorway. The rest of the class eyed him with fear. Ciel turned, and left without a word.

The Shinigami skipped after him down the hall. "Aww, don't be like that, {chibi!}. He drawled.

"Drop the charade," the earl snapped.

"Oh, but a good actor never stops acting!" Grell proclaimed as they walked outside to the front of the school. "Now, come here!" He stretched out his hands.

"No!" Ciel recoiled. "I'm not letting you touch me!"

"Don't be ridiculous," Grell scoffed. "Any man would gladly give his pinkie finger for me to lay a hand on him!"

"And I'd give my pinkie finger for you _not_ to lay a hand in me," Ciel bit out. "Stay away!"

"You'd better watch your words," Grell warned darkly. "Sebas-Chan said he wanted you back unharmed, but I'm sure he won't notice a missing finger or two." Grell held out his arms again. "Now, get in!"

"I don't need your help!" Ciel huffed. "I can walk. You needn't carry me like a baby."

"Tch. The deal was that I'd bring you back to the mansion! If I return without you, I won't get my kisssss!" the Shinigami whined, throwing a fit. "Cielllll! Don't ruin this for meeeee!"

"Then just walk with me," Ciel suggested.

"Hell no!" Grell adjusted his glasses. "He said I need I be back by one- fifteen, and look! It's already one- ten!"

"That's too bad." Ciel walked away from him. "Guess you'll have to find another time," he said smugly.

"_Oh no you don't_."

Something sliced through the air, getting closer and closer to the earl's head by the millisecond. Before Ciel had the chance to duck, something struck him hard on the head, and everything went black.

* * *

" Sebas~Chaaan!"

"I believe my exact words were, 'Return Ciel as he was when I left him' not, 'Return Ciel unconscious and with a potential concussion'."

"Oh, believe me, it wasn't my fault! The boy refused to come along!"

"And so you threw your chainsaw at him."

"I purposely hit him with the flat side, okay? Sheesh! Of all the brats to get stuck with, why this one?"

"... He isn't a brat. I've certainly seen worse. Now if you'll excuse me..."

"H-Hey! What're you doing? What about my-"

There was a slam.

"... Bocchan?"

Soft blue eyes popped open. "I'm going to kill you."

"You may, after you eat your dinner," Sebastian promised. "Though a word of advice- you might want to wait until dessert. I'm making your favorite- parfait."

"I can't believe you sent that lunatic after me."

Sebastian nodded. "My apologies. I misjudged Grell." He helped the earl up.

"Indeed you did." Ciel rubbed the back of his head. It was sore. "How long have I been out?"

"About three hours. Young master, look at me." An angry glare rose to meet him. The butler studied the sparkling sapphire eyes for a spell. "Excellent. No concussion."

Ciel snorted. "You're lucky then. If that had given me a concussion, I would've killed you _twice over_."

"And I have no doubts about that. Does it go without saying that I am still banned from the school?"

"Yes! Now make me something to eat. I want that parfait now."

"Before dinner?" Sebastian questioned. At Ciel's furious you- owe- me look, he nodded his acceptance. "Very well. But just this once."

* * *

*Quoted from Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

**A/N: ****I feel like this one was rushed... -_-**


	4. Chapter 4 The Ambitious 'A's

**A/N: It looks like it's gonna rain here. Excellent- I love rain. ^.^**

**Excuse the swearing in this chapter. T.T**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Kuroshitsuji, or make any money from this piece of... work. Ciel claims everyone to be his pawns, and who am I to deny him?**

**String Cheese: ****String... Cheese? As in, the food? O_O AWESOME NAME. Here's an update for your awesome name! :D I think I'll go eat you now. Thanks a bunch for the review! :3**

**MEOWSALOT:**** Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow! Thanks a lot for the compliment! :D**

* * *

**Ciel In School**

**Chapter Four- The Ambitious 'A's**

**Pov: Third Person**

* * *

"Who are they?"

This particular morning, Sebastian had seemed especially complacent. The earl had gotten up extra early_,due to his own doing_, in order to monitor his butler prepare lunch, in the case that a certain demon decided to conveniently forget a portion of his much needed nourishment- or worse, all of it.

Ciel had stood and observed, quietly fuming, for what had seemed like hours while Sebastian sliced the bread for his sandwich painstakingly slow. It had taken the butler _ten whole minutes_ to cut two slices of bread. During this time, Sebastian hadn't even looked up to acknowledge his young master's presence. He had been completely immersed in only the bread with the most solemn expression on his face- the only thing that had given him away was the slight curve at the edge of his lips.

The earl had stubbornly refused to order Sebastian to cut the bread faster. All he'd get in return was a excruciatingly annoying smirk, and a "Yes, my lord," laced with the barest hint of mockery. Though Sebastian would ultimately be forced to cut the bread faster, Ciel would feel like he'd lost the game. He always did.

Besides, he had plenty of time.

But when the demon cheerfully took an extra five minutes to place the pricey meat perfectly between the folds of bread, it nearly shattered his sanity.

"Sebastian," he'd hissed, "Hurry the Hell up!"

The lone servant of the Phantomhive family had glanced up and smiled, as if he hadn't a worry in the world. "Yes, my lord," he had said, and bowed gracefully.

Ciel had lost.

The butler continued his work at normal pace, chopping off the crusts of the bread before securing the sandwich in an airtight container, washing and polishing the now shiny red apple that was sure to take half an hour for the earl to fully consume, retrieving an ice- cold juice box from the refrigerator, and taking out a box of pocky, before carefully packing everything away into the blue polka- dotted lunch bag.

Ciel hadn't said a word after that; he'd just padded softly out of the kitchen, down the hall, and up towards his bedroom. Sebastian had followed, fulfilling his duties in smug silence.

As usual, Ciel hadn't picked his own clothes out- he'd left that to Sebastian.

The earl knew how to dress himself in modern- day clothes, of course. Even so, the demon dutifully returned to his side each morning, having ironed the clothes of choice the night before, and proceeded to dress him.

It was a habit that neither of them bothered to break.

The drive to school had been an uneventful one. The pair hadn't said much- Ciel had still bore a grudge against his butler for his loss this morning, and was unwilling to take part in Sebastian's fruitless attempts at conversation.

And here he was now, in class, doing art. Ugh. They were supposed to be painting the bowl of fruits placed at the front of the class, though Ciel wasn't having much luck. His banana... Didn't look like a banana. More like a pineapple.

"Who are they?" he whispered again, Finnie not having heard him the first time he'd asked.

"Them?" Finnie gestured to the new group of students that had walked in through the door. Ciel nodded. They hadn't been at the school yesterday, or the day before, as a matter of fact...

"They're scary! I'd rather not talk about them." Finnie squeaked, brusquely turning back to his painting.

"Tell me about them," Ciel ordered in a what -he -hoped -seemed- like bored tone. He didn't want to appear _too_ curious.

"Welllll," Finnie started, "They were here last year. The ones with the purple hair are Anton and Arton. They're twins, and they'll beat up anyone who gets in their way. The one with the long black hair is named Ayame. She's soooo pretty... I just loooove her eyes- they're all big, and brown, and sparkly! She's really fit, too. I mean, she can run one hundred meters in t-"

"Moving on."

"Er... Right. The one with the brown hair is Alec. He's... I don't know how to describe him, but I'd be careful around him... If you get on his bad side-" Finnie made a slitting motion against his throat. "They call themselves The Ambitious 'A's. You know, because all they're names start with the letter 'A'. If your name doesn't start with an 'A', they won't let you in their group. You also have to be really smart and really pretty to get in. One time, they pushed me into a big puddle, and stole my snack," Finnie pouted, looking put out. "I don't think they like me so much. Maybe I should change my name so I they'll accept me?"

"That's ridiculous," Ciel snorted. "Change your name to get into a group like _that_? ... I think it isn't worth more than the trouble. From what you've told me, they seem like a bunch of cowards. You're better off, Finnie."

As if on cue, Alec's eyes flashed dangerously to meet Ciel's own icy blue ones. They met for more than a moment and stayed there, neither of them willing to back down. The tension was so thick it was tangible- until Ayame tapped Alec on the shoulder, and he grudgingly shifted his attention to her.

Finnie peered over Ciel's shoulder. "You know, your banana looks more like a pineapple."

* * *

"T-Thank you for your wonderful artwork," Ms. Mandel said to the class, "T-These will be graded and handed back to you by tomorrow."

Tomorrow? Ciel sighed. If anything, he would be lucky to get over a seventy percent.

"Hey."

Ciel turned. Alec stood not three feet away from him, arms crisscrossed proudly over his chest. His brown hair was carelessly swept to the side, though a couple of rebellious strands stuck up."You're Ciel, aren't you?"

"Yes," he replied shortly. "What's it to you?"

Alec paused, as if deciding on something. "Alois here told me about you. Not so good with math, eh?" he sneered. Next to him, Alois giggled and wiggled his fingers, as well as his eyebrows.

The earl hesitated. Here, he had a number of choices. He could be straight out rude, and brush the taller boy off, or he could slip into his good graces by agreeing with him and whatnot. Another option would be to stick with neutral, though if he wasn't careful, his words could easily be interpreted negatively. Although the last thing he needed was to make any potential enemies right now, Ciel wasn't too keen on sucking up to The Ambitious 'A's. In fact, the very thought seemed revolting to him. Act all sweet and star- struck? To Hell with that! If worse came to worse, Sebastian could be his trump card.

"Get to the point," Ciel said harshly. "You wouldn't have walked all the way over here just to inform me of my lack of talent in math." He tilted his head and looked directly into the other's eyes. "You'd have shouted it from across the room."

Alec's eyes narrowed until they were mere blue slits. "Watch your tongue, _Phantomhive_. Ayame and I were going to invite you to sit with us for lunch today, but I think I might change my mind. I don't like to be around people like _you_."

"Likewise," he stated flatly. "You might as well not invite me. It'd be a waste of time. I'm sure you already know what my answer would be- unless you're too dimwitted?"

"I _said_," Alec threatened, pushing into Ciel's personal bubble, and glaring down at him, "_watch your tongue_."

Ciel smiled right at him, and it would've been a beautiful smile if his eyes hadn't been so dark and menacing. "I cannot watch my tongue," he smirked, "as I have no eyes in my mouth."

The earl watched as Alec's face shifted from confused, to understanding, then to downright anger. He watched, as Alec's arm reared back, as if to strike him in the face, and he instinctively braced for impact.

The immortal had never learned any sort of defensive maneuver. Ciel hadn't the time or patience to, for one, and he'd always had Sebastian to back him up. So when an arm snaked out and abruptly caught and held back the offending fist, all thoughts immediately went to Sebastian. But as his gaze focused on someone else entirely, surprise took its rightful throne.

"B... Baldroy?" he stuttered. No! That couldn't be right! His chef had died decades ago...

"Baldroy? Who's that?" Bard asked, puzzled. "It's Bard, remember?"

"What're you doing? Let go of me!" Alec shook himself free, and rounded on Bard. "Listen here, you bastard! Don't you fucking _dare_ touch me! Just stay the Hell away, and let me do whatever the Hell I want!" he snapped, and with that, he stomped away, defeated.

Silence reigned for a few moments.

"... It looked like you two were gonna go at it, so I ran and got Bard," Finnie explained, scratching the back of his head.

"What were you thinking?" Bard sighed in exasperation. "He could've beaten you up, Ciel! Look at 'cha! You're just over five feet! He wouldn't have had any trouble pickin' off a runt like you- no offense," he added, after a moment of thought.

"I could've handled myself," Ciel frowned. He did not like people taking pity on him. "You didn't have to swoop in and save me, if it's that much of a bother."

Bard only shrugged nonchalantly and chewed on a piece of gum."Nah, s'alright. Ya just gotta stop provoking people, or ya gonna get beat."

"I'll keep that in mind," Ciel muttered. "... I appreciate the help," he said stiffly after a few moments. "... Thank you..."

Bard looked shocked. "I... Uh... That is... No problem," he finished lamely. "Anytime."

"A-Attention!"Ms. Mandel stood at the front of the room and clapped her hands. "W-We are having a surprise math test! P-Please sit at your assigned seats, and put all books away."

The Hell? A math test? Today? Ciel sat at his desk, thoughts flying a mile a minute. Maybe he should fake an illness and asked to be excused from class. That way, he would miss the test- but no, the earl could see The Ambitious 'A's snickering to each other and pointing in his general direction. Alec, in particular. If he walked out now, they'd know he had been faking it, and tease him to no end.

"Oooohhh, Ciel's in deep shit now!" he heard one of them say.

"I think he can pull through," a smooth voice objected. "Don't you?"

"Ayame! How could you say that? The kid's a total freak." Alec protested.

Ciel frowned. So Ayame was rooting for him? What was _that_ all about?

"I-I'll be passing out the papers now," Ms. Mandel announced. "S-Stay in your seats!"

Ciel's mind raced. What could he do? He could try and copy the person next to him, but there was no guarantee that he'd get the answers right. Plus, to resort to something as low as that...

He cringed as the test was placed on his desk. Six pages long! Oh god...

"Y-You may now begin. N-No talking!"

No. He could do this. He _would_ do this. He would do this test, and he would pass. He'd get a higher mark than the rest of them.

Ciel bent over his paper, pencil in hand, and got to work.

* * *

Dammit! Damn it all to Hell!

He couldn't do this. It was impossible. For the pass half hour, he'd been stuck on question one.

What was the use to all these equations? How was this going to help him in life? As far as he was concerned, this was pointless, as he had Sebastian to do everything for him.

Sebastian...

It was a rainy day in London, as usual. Perfect weather, and Ciel happened to be sitting conveniently close to a window that could open...

The earl swiftly flipped the latches, and pushed open the window.

"Sebastian," he whispered under his breath, "come here."

A brilliant flash of lightning lit up the room, and with it, bringing Sebastian's figure into view.

He crouched precariously on the window sill, and placed a hand to his heart, slightly dipping his head. A few stray drops of rain dripped down from some of Sebastian's strands of hair, and met their demise two stories below. "You called, my lord?" the butler murmured.

"Yes," Ciel hissed, "tell me the correct answers to this godforsaken test! That's an order!"

Sebastian smirked. "Lacking the skills in which allows you to do it yourself, young master?"

"Now, Sebastian!" Ciel snapped as quietly as he could. Luckily, no one noticed the soft laugh that emitted from his butler's godamn mouth. The rest of the class had their heads down towards their desk, focused on only the test. Ms. Mandel appeared to be drawing on the board.

The lightning lit up the world once again, promptly followed by scattered thunder. "Yes, my lord," the butler abided. "The answer to question number one is thirty- three. I'm fairly sure question number two is four. Number three is... Oh dear."

"C-Ciel?" Ms. Mandel hovered over the earl concernedly, and the boy jumped. "W-Why did you open the window?"

Ciel relaxed. His teacher hadn't seen Sebastian, then. "I get claustrophobic," he lied easily.

Ms. Mandel nodded understandably. "A-Alright, but you'll have to close the window, Ciel. A-All the rain will come in if you leave it open. I-I'm sorry."

He gritted his teeth. Great. Now he could add claustrophobia to his supposed list of problems, and all for nothing.

When he moved to close the window, however, he found something lying in wait for him; a slip of paper, neatly folded and resting on the surface of his desk, partially hidden behind his testing paper.

Curious, he picked it up and unfolded it. This could only be from one person...

_My lord,_ It read, _the answers to your test are as follows:_

_Question number three- Seventy six_

_Question number four- Twenty- Five_

_Question number five- Ten_

The list went on and on. Ciel hastily scribbled down Sebastian's answers when the teacher's attention was elsewhere. While he was grateful for the help, the entire cheat sheet was written in excessive, elaborate cursive, which gave him a massive headache to read. He suspected this was done specifically to annoy him.

"T-Time's up!" Ms. Mandel called out. "P-Please hand in your sheets at my desk!"

Yawning, Ciel followed through, before ripping Sebastian's sheet into more than several pieces, and depositing everything into the nearest recycling bin.

There. All was done, and he was sure to get at least one- hundred percent on today's test.

Now he just had to survive the rest of the day.

* * *

"D-Don't forget- you have parent- teacher conferences tomorrow after school!"

The bell signaling the end of the school day went off, leaving a trail of liberation in its wake.

Finally, school was over, and he was allowed to go home and stuff himself with as much parfait as his butler would allow before dinner.

"How was the math test, Ciel?" Finnie asked as he was packing away his bag.

"Easy," he replied with confidence. "Yourself?"

Finnie looked pleased. "Wow! That's great, Ciel! I'm so happy for you! The test was OK- I don't think I got over an eighty percent, though, but that's okay, since my mom said I have to get at least over a seventy, and she'll buy me the bird I wanted from the pet store! I'm going to name him birdy, and I'll take real good care of him! Oh! Once I get him, I can show you sometime, maybe! You could come over to my house, or me to yours- whichever works best for you- or I can just bring my bird to school! Would that work? He's got green stripes on him, and-"

"That's great. I've got to go now," Ciel interjected. Personally, he didn't mind Finnie that much, so long as he kept his babbling to a minimum. But when things got chatty, it was time to go.

"Oh, okay. Bye, Ciel!" Finnie waved cheerfully, oblivious to Ciel's brush off.

Ciel exited the classroom, and headed down the hall. The school was now mostly bare of its students; the majority of them headed home. He turned and made his way towards the staircase, pulling open the door with some difficulty, and was in the middle of descending down the stairs, when-

"Ciel."

He froze. It was Alec. He had recognized the voice immediately.

"Yes?" he asked indifferently.

"I believe," he said, "we did not get to finish what we started."

Before Ciel could reply, twins Arton and Anton lurched out of the darkness behind him, and held fast to his arms, effectively rendering his hands immobile.

He scowled as Alec approached him with leisure. A three on one fight? Hardly fair. But then again, if their roles were reversed, Ciel wouldn't have cared about fair or not- just winning.

The boy was clearly taking his time, hoping to succeed in scaring him, Ciel mused. As if! He wasn't impressed- not in the least.

He vaguely wondered if calling Sebastian was the smart thing to do- though it wasn't like he needed the demon's help. He had to prove he could handle this on his own. Yes, he was strong enough.

"You're not so tough now, are ya?" Alec teased darkly. "Not with all those friends to back you up..." And without warning, he swung his fist, catching him on the side of his face and cracking his head to the side.

The smaller boy regained his composure, and coughed, spitting out blood. "You hypocrite," he laughed hoarsely. "At least my friends had acted of their own consent." He jerked his head to the side, gesturing to the twins. "Did you pay them to help you?"

With an enraged roar, the black haired boy charged forward, planning to strike again.

Ciel waited, waited until the right moment, before driving his right leg forward, and connecting with the blasphemous place- the nether regions.

Alec crumpled with an _oompf_, both hands over his crotch.

Instantaneously, both twins spun on him, simultaneously beating him, kicking him, from all sides. It was all Ciel could do to curl into a ball with his arms clasped over his head as a meager means of protection.

Ciel couldn't think, couldn't breathe. All the earl could concentrate on we're the blows that rained down on him.

Through the haze of his pain, he in distinctly heard Alec whimper, "Holy mother of fucking god, that fucking hurt! Fuck, fuck, fuck! I'll never be able to have any fucking children ever fucking again!"

Despite his current predicament, Ciel smirked. He would go down fighting...

A foot swung towards him in what seemed like slow motion. On a whim, he caught the foot in his hands, and yanked. With the excess of momentum, the owner of the foot was pulled forward, and landed on a heap on the floor. Rising to his feet, he spotted Arton, and before the purple haired boy could take any actions, Ciel leapt like a cat, tackling the other straight in the solar plexus, and bringing the both of them down to earth.

"W-What's going on here?"

Ciel jumped off of Arton in surprise, spinning to look up at the perpetrator.

Ms. Mandel looked around in shock, taking in Anton, who still lay, defeated, on the floor, Arton, whom Ciel had just disembarked from, and Alec, who appeared to be clutching his... Male reproduction systems.

Finally she turned to the last one standing. "C-Ciel? W-What happened?"

Ciel paused. Fight or flight?

Ms. Mandel took a step forward. "Ciel?"

The earl snatched up his fallen bag, and bolted down the stairs. He could hear his teacher calling after him, but he didn't care. He'd had enough trouble for one day.

Ciel found Sebastian waiting for him at the front, idly checking his pocket watch. Before his butler could question him, he raced into the car and slammed the doors.

"Sebastian. Drive. Now," he ordered, resting his head on the back of the seat in front of him. When Sebastian didn't immediately comply, he snapped, "Now!"

He felt the car advance, and relaxed. Now, Ms. Mandel couldn't come running after him...

"My lord," Sebastian inquired tersely, "where, between the heavens and Hell, {have you been?}"

"It's a long story," Ciel mumbled. He wasn't in the mood.

The rest of the car ride was a silent one.

* * *

When they arrived at the mansion, the earl darted out of the car, and marched into the manor. As soon as he entered, however, Sebastian was there, first aid kit in hand.

"I don't need your help!" Ciel told him. "I can do it myself!"

The demon sighed, exasperated. "My lord," he said, "I apologize in advance."

Ciel's eyes narrowed. "What's that supposed to m-"

With blinding speed, Sebastian had dashed towards the earl, and thrown the boy over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Sebastian!" Ciel yelped, upside down. "I order you to- mmph?!"

"I'm afraid that I am have difficulties understanding the bocchan," Sebastian quipped mischievously, a gloved hand placed gently over the boy's mouth. "I suppose I will be forced to act as I see fit." Sapphire blue eyes widened.

The butler ascended the stairs that led to the master's bedroom, and deposited the young master onto the bed so that he sat upright. The said young master childishly refused to meet his butler's scarlet eyes.

"This may hurt a smidge," the demon warned as he uncapped the rubbing alcohol.

Ciel appeared indifferent, though his nose did twitch slightly when Sebastian placed the alcohol- laden cotton ball onto the scrape on his knee.

"Are you going to tell me what happened?" Sebastiaan inquired after a few moments. "The truth will come to light, eventually."

Ciel exhaled. "I got into a fight with three other boys from my class. They started it."

Sebastian looked furious. "Why did you not call me?" he interrogated, wrapping bandages around his arms. "Now, see what a mess you've made? One cannot simply come blundering into the main hall dripping blood, young master."

"... Yes, you're right." Ciel admitted, wincing slightly as his butler dabbed at a cut on his cheek. "I do not care to ruin my clothes again..."

"Next time?" Sebastian quirked a brow. Ciel nodded. The demon sighed. " Tell me, young master. You might've not started the fight, but did you, by any chance, start the war?"

"... I might've started the war, but I'll be the one to win it," he proclaimed.

The demon handed him a kid's Tylenol. "If I may be so brazen, young master, a good king never goes looking for war."

Ciel pushed the pill away. "He who strikes first always wins."

Sebastian crushed the pill into dust, and dropped the remains into a glass of water before offering it to the young master. "I believe it is in my best interest to discreetly accompany you during your school hours," he said sternly.

The young master accepted the water, and gulped it down, making a face at the bitter taste. "... I would... appreciate that..."

Sebastian smirked. Oh, what fun. "As you wish, my lord."

* * *

**A/N: Heh heh. Ciel's such a girl, worrying about ruining his clothes. :D**


	5. Chapter 5 Let's Play Pretend

**A/N: This is waay overdue, I know. .**

**DISCLAIMER: No own, no sue. I don't make any money from this piece of work. Grell says he owns Sebastian. I am not held responsible for whatever actions Ciel might take to disprove this.**

* * *

**Ciel In School**

**Chapter Five- ****Let's Play Pretend**

* * *

It was three in the morning, and Ciel Phantomhive was done with waiting. He sat upright in his bed, gently peeled off the covers, slipped into his slippers, and attempted to pull on his robe. His fingers fumbled with the buttons, so he just left them undone.

He felt his way around the side of his bed and out into the hallway. It was pitch black, but Ciel didn't need light. He knew his mansion well enough.

He crept along the corridor, wincing slightly whenever his footsteps would make an ungodly _creak._

The earl paused as he passed by Sebastian's room. He was tempted to peek inside, to see if the demon actually slept. As long as his butler had been employed as a servant of the Phantomhive family, Ciel hadn't seen Sebastian sleep. Not a wink. He raised out a hand to push open the door- but no, there was the risk of being caught, or worse, teased. He froze, thinking.

In the end, he decided against it, played it safe. Maybe he'd snoop in on his way back.

Ciel continued on his way, inching towards the kitchen. He made his breathing as shallow as possible- his butler possessed uncanny hearing skills which surpassed that of an average human's.

Ciel had only been in the kitchen a few amount of times, though he knew where Sebastian always kept the parfait; in the far most black refrigerator on the top shelf to the right.

He made his way there, past the massive stove, the coffee thing, the microwave, and came to a stop at his destination.

The Phantomhive household owned more than several refrigerators, as Sebastian needed room to keep all his pre- prepared sweets. All refrigerators were top- notch, flawlessly operative, and very, very expensive. Of course, money was certainly no object when it came to Ciel and his prideful shopping.

Seven refridgerators lined up perfectly like bigger- than - life toy soldiers. Each one of them towered hilariously over the top of Ciel's head, though it never seemed to pose as a problem for Sebastian, who could reach the top shelf with ease. From time to time, although it was ridiculous, Ciel wondered if his butler could fly.

He faced the seven soldiers. They stood proudly in a pattern; black, white, black, white.

He approached the very last black refrigerator, and tugged open the thick door. The parfait was set at the furthest shelf from the bottom. Ciel could just barely see the edge of the container.

Though it disgraced him to do so, he stood on the tip of his toes, and reached as high as he could.

If it was for parfait, it was worth it.

He extended his arms as far as they would go, reaching desperately for the small piece of heaven he was so eager to get his hands on, reaching, reaching-

Screw it. He required a chair.

Ciel stubbornly dragged a sturdy wooden chair to sit at the base of the black refrigerator. Curse this useless thirteen- year old body...

He stepped onto the chair, glowering down at the object when it creaked threateningly.

At last, he finally had the prized article held lovingly in his hands. He brought himself carefully down to the cold marble flooring, parfait clutched close to his chest.

A spoon. He needed a spoon.

Luckily, Sebastian only used knives and forks to kill people, as all the deadly silverware could be found on his butler's person, except for spoons. They had plenty of spoons to spare.

Spoon in hand, parfait in the other, Ciel placed himself at the head of his overly extravagant dining table, before gently dipping the spoon into the treat, and fervently sticking the dessert laden utensil in his mouth.

{God}. He'd been craving parfait all day long. After being consistently denied the frozen dessert throughout the week, Ciel decided he had no choice but to take matters into his own hands. Good Sebastian wasn't around or he'd be indirectly scolded for having a midnight snack...

"My, my. You'll need to brush your teeth once again to avoid any cavities, young master."

Ciel was jarred out of his seat and onto the floor, taking the beloved dessert with him. "What the- Sebastian! Make me another parfait, now!" He gestured angrily to the mess around him. "And clean this up!"

Sebastian raised a hand to his temple, and sighed."As you wish."

* * *

"Perhaps if you hadn't pushed yourself to extremity and stayed awake much past your bedtime, you wouldn't feel so tired, bocchan." Sebastian turned to fa ce Ciel in the backseat of the car, hands still on the steering wheel, and smiled. "You, are, after all, still very young."

"Keep your eyes on the road," Ciel retorted coldly. "You're going to crash and kill me."

Sebastian only smirked. "Someone seems to be especially grumpy this morning. More so than usual. "

"I said," the earl snapped, with an unusual amount of malice in his eyes, "keep your eyes _on the road!"_

Sebastian complied, smirk still visible. "I am disappointed in your lack of faith." The smirk suddenly disappeared, replaced by a mournful, kicked- puppy look. "Have I lost my master's trust?"

Ciel huffed, unimpressed. Stupid butler and his stupid mind games. "You have yet to gain it."

Sebastian only smiled.

The limousine pulled into the school's parking lot, where Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "Shall I let you off here, or would you like me to come with you?"

"Come with me? Why? " Ciel shook his head. "I'm going alone. I'll call you if I need you, okay?"

"Yes, my lord."

Before he could blink, Sebastian was at his side, holding the car door open for him. Ciel stepped out of the car, and into the school, without looking back.

As soon as he entered, he was bombarded with questions.

"What happened, Ciel?" Finnie was at his side, tugging at his shoulder. "What'd they do?"

"I told ya not to provoke them!" Bard proclaimed. "I told ya!"

Ciel was puzzled. What was going on? What had happened?

Alec came sauntering around the corner, a sneer planted firmly on his face. "Ms. Mandel would like to see you," he preened, "Phantomhive."

Ciel stared at the other boy as he brushed past him. He had been wearing a bandage on either side of his cheeks, and had been walking with a certain limp.

_Of course._ He had been in a fight only yesterday. Ms. Mandel had seen Ciel on the offensive. Alec had more than likely tattled to his teacher false information, spinning lies like a spider did a web.

"C- Ciel?" Ms. Mandel was standing at the doorway. "C-Can you meet me in my office, please?" Her tone didn't sound reprimanding, which was always a good sign.

As he stepped in and shut the door, he could hear the snickers and jeers floating tauntingly after him. He ignored them all.

"You wanted to see me?" he queried.

"Y-Yes. Y-Yesterday afternoon, right after school ended, you were seen aggressively attacking three other boys from our class," Ms. Mandel stated.

Ciel said nothing.

"W-When questioned, the boys confirmed that you approached them first," she continued. "I-Is this true?"

"No," Ciel replied firmly. "They were the ones who had followed me after class. I am not to blame."

Ms. Mandel sighed, slipped off her glasses and cleaned them using her blouse. "I-I'd like to believe you, Ciel, I really do. D-Do you have any evidence to back up your claim?"

_Crap._ His case was shaky, he knew. He had no evidence. He had no eyewitness. He had no one to defend his allegation.

There was a knock on the door.

Ciel snapped his head bak around to see the office door ajar, and a strikingly familiar figure hovering at the center. "Pardon the interruption," Sebastian smirked, "but I do have some findings that might bring new thinkings to light."

Ciel gaped. The idiot! Sebastian was donned in only a pair of glasses, a simple, pressed suit, and leather loafers, tagging along a briefcase. Did he really think he wouldn't be recognized?

Miraculously, there was no glimmer of recognition, no spark in her eyes as Ms. Mandel addressed the intruder. "A-And who might you be?" she asked, as politely as one could when there was a strange, uncalled for man in the room.

"I," he said, "am simply one Hell of a lawyer." Sebastian slid into the seat adjacent to Ciel. "Light Yagami," he smiled, drawing out a gloved hand.

As soon as the demon sat down, the earl kicked him in the shins. Hard. Light Yagami, of all people? Why not pick a name more conspicuous, for god's sake!

"P-Pleased to meet you, uh, Mr. Yagami," Ms. Mandel greeted shyly, grasping the proffered hand. Sebastian held on for a touch longer than necessary, before gently slipping away. Luckily, there did not seem to be any sort of recognition or suspicion in the teacher's eyes.

They sat there in silence for a spell, until Ms. Mandel realized why she was here. Dazed, she said, "Y-You had something to show me?"

"Ah," the butler said, flicking open his briefcase. "Yes." And he procured a simple silver USB. "You'll find the required evidence here. Might you have a data processing machine in the vicinity?"

"Y-Yes, I do." Ms. Mandel reached under her desk, and produced a portable laptop. She plugged the USB into the designated slot, and waited as the computer spurred to life. A box came up, prompting for a password. Ciel heard the teacher enter in five keys before logging on to the system. A popup suddenly flickered to life, accompanied with a mechanic beep, scaring the shit out of him. Ms. Mandel clicked on the floating box, and in no time, Alec was displayed on the screen.

"I believe," he was saying, "we did not get to finish what we started."

And then he started his assault.

After thirty seconds, the video ran out, and the screen flickered to black. Ms. Mandel had a grave expression etched on her face. "I-I see," she said, then rose to her feet. "I-I'm terribly sorry for this mistake, Ciel. I-I'll have to have a talk with Alec."

"That's quite alright," Ciel mumbled. As if he cared.

She shot him a stern look. "C-Ciel, take the rest of the day off. Y-You need to get yourself checked out, ok?"

He brightened a little at this. "Hear that, Light? _I get to go home_," he taunted.

Sebastian gave him a dangerously sweet smile. "Yes. How wonderful for you." Inside, Ciel knew, the butler was infuriated. As soon as they left the school grounds, the earl was going to get it- in Sebastian's own discreet way, of course. Probably something like deliberately swapping all the strawberries in his parfait for blueberries. How he loathed blueberries!

"Well, if we're done here, I'll be going now." Ciel nodded to his teacher. "Let's go, Seb- er-Light."

* * *

"You got lucky this time,_ bocchan_," Sebastian remarked, as he revved up the car rather aggressively.

"How did you come by the video footage?" Ciel cut straight to the chase.

"I asked the janitor," Sebastian replied, turning a curb. "Nicely."

The earl raised an eyebrow. "Surely an institutional janitor wouldn't have given a suspicious looking character such as you information regarding students attending this school," he pointed out. "What did you do?"

Sebastian smirked. "There are effective ways to gain information. I am an expert in this area."

Ciel frowned. "You tortured him?"

The demon ran through a red light. "Not quite."

"Then what..." Ciel trailed off as a horrifying prospect dawned upon him. "Sebastian!" he scowled. "That's disgusting!"

"I beg your pardon?" The butler turned to him, successfully putting on an innocent façade.

"You know what I'm talking about!" he snapped. "I can't believe you'd do that to get information. And here I'd thought you had an ounce of morality!" Ciel shook his head. "But you're just a demon in the end, aren't you?" It was wrong. It was immoral. The Queen's Guard Dog would stoop to low measures to ensure the Queen's happiness, but this... _this_ was one of the very few exceptions.

"...Young master, might you be referring to the use of intercourse as bait in return for information?"

Ciel turned beet red. "Yes," he replied curtly.

Sebastian smiled at him through the rear- end mirror. "Demons posses the ability to charm as well as fascinate humans to our pleasure. Most demons can go so far as to manipulate humans without the use of..." He turned into the driveway of the Phantomhive mansion. "Sexual congress."

The earl crossed his arms. "What are you implying?"

Sebastian held open the door, and said with a grin, "I am implying that I was successfully able to acquire the video footage without the use of my body."

Ciel stepped out of the car. "Is your implication true?"

"Yes, my lord." The pair made their way towards the main door.

"Are you lying?"

"I'm standing, my lord."

"Sebastian..."

"I swore never to lie to you, young master. I will make good on that promise." The butler tugged out a key from his waistcoat and unlocked the door. "If I may be so brazen, why would a young master such as you be concerned in a mere butler's tactics?"

"..."

"Young master?"

Ciel walked into the front foyer, and held out his arms for Sebastian to remove his coat. "If you think I care about how you sell your body, you're wrong. I simply can't have a representative of the Phantomhive residence take part in such a repulsive approach. It would defile my image, as well as the name of the Phantomhive's."

Sebastian slipped the coat off of the earl's slim shoulders. "Your acting skills are absolutely first- class, my lord."

Ciel snapped toward him. "What're you going on about?" he asked sharply.

"Nothing of importance, young master," the butler replied slyly. "Excuse my thoughtlessness."

"... Whatever. Draw me a hot bath, Sebastian," he ordered.

"I'm afraid that would be unwise. You forget you have an appointment with Ms. Mandel after school," the demon deposited the jacket onto the nearest coat rack.

"The parent- teacher conference?" he snorted. "Like Hell I'm going."

"You should, if you want to keep up appearances, my lord."

"It's a blatant waste of time," Ciel stated. "Besides, Ms. Mandel will, without a doubt, recognize you as the alleged 'Light Yagami' as soon as you walk in the door. Keeping up appearances is to not go to that meeting."

"So I'll send Grell in my stead," Sebastian reasoned cheerfully. "He is, after all, your ostensible mother."

"Do you want people to die?" Ciel questioned. "Grell is unstable on a level that surpasses even yours." He made a face. "I have no idea how he'll react if I bring him to school."

"Well then, it is decided." Sebastian gave him a sideways smile. "I will be accompanying you to the conference."

"I'll admit, I'd rather have you instead of Grell," Ciel said grudgingly. "Just- make sure to behave yourself. Act accordingly. Understood?"

"Yes, my lord."

* * *

"A-And you must be Sebastian Michaelis, Ciel's guardian," Ms. Mandel greeted warmly, reaching out a hand. "I-I remember you from the first day, Mr. Michaelis."

Sebastian grasped the soft, feminine hand. "As do I, Ms. Mandel. But please, there is no need for formalities. I must request that you address me as 'Sebastian'."

"O-Oh, then, I'll have to insist that you call me Carry," she replied shyly.

Ciel glanced at the pair. Sebastian had yet to let go of his teacher's hand. God, he was sure laying it on thick, wasn't he?

"P-Please take a seat over here, Mr. Mi- uh, S-Sebastian." Ms. Mandel gestured to a desk and four chairs. "C-Ciel is a _pleasure_ to teach in class; he's always so kind and respectful towards his peers-"

"Oh, really?"

"Y-Yes, though he does have a little trouble in math..."

Bored, Ciel tuned the both of them out. On the brighter side, it seemed like Ms. Mandel did not recognize Sebastian as "Light Yagami", his supposed "lawyer". Did the demon really look _that_ different with his glasses on?

Why did the butler need glasses, anyway? Weren't demons supposed to have perfect eyesight? Come to think of it, Sebastian only wore his glasses while reading, dancing, disguising himself as another person, or teaching. Was he farsighted, or something?

Speaking of teaching, Ciel vaguely wondered how Sebastian would fare as a teacher. Never, not once, had his butler lost his patience when trying to teach Ciel difficult material. Oh, of course Ciel had attempted to put an end to the demon's endless patience, but to no avail. He had set his homework on fire- Sebastian had only calmly blown the flames out, and given him a sideways glance. "Are you feeling well, young master?" he would inquire, and Ciel would mutter that yes, he was fine, just a headache.

He had purposely got every single question on his math test wrong, only to have Sebastian sit with him throughout the night and into the morning, patiently going over each and every math equation until he had completely understood the concept.

Never mad. Amused, mocking, a little tired, maybe, but never mad.

Not with him, at least.

When Ciel had ordered Sebastian away due to Claude's upbringing, he had been furious. Violent. Crazed, even. Ciel had heard the trees being torn apart from within the Trancy mansion.

Back then, Ciel had figured that this possessiveness his butler displayed could be passed off, as Ciel was his meal- nothing more. But now... A teensy part of him dared to hope that Sebastian was not only keeping him around for laughs, but because he actually cared a little.

"Ciel, I have marked your artwork that you handed in the other day."

Ciel snapped out of his reverie. "Oh... Thank you." He reached for his painting, reluctant to see his mark. As soon as he had it in his grasp however, the artwork was plucked impatiently out of his hands.

"Goodness, Ciel! Since when'd you become so talented at art?" Grell gushed, shoving the paper back at Ciel's face and reaching for Sebastian. "Daaarrrliiing! How I've missed you so! Sorry I'm late! I had to settle some business with a certain _Will the Shinigami_- gimme a big kiss!" And to the demon's dismay and utter shock, Grell leaned over and placed his mouth squarely on his.

Ciel had no idea what happened next- Grell had been all over Sebastian at one moment, and on the other side of the room the next with a bang}, sprawled on the ground below a Grell- like imprint in the wall, and sporting a very black eye.

"Ooooooh, Sebas~Chan! You're so cold, as always! I love that about you, but," he said, ruefully rubbing his eyes, "WHY'D YA HAVE TO GO AND RUIN A WOMAN'S FACE?!"

Ms. Mandel intervened. "M-Mrs. Michaelis, p-please calm d-down-"

"His name is Mr. Sutcliff," Sebastian cut in, "He is not married to me." He turned to glare at Grell. "And he never has been, nor will be."

"He? But I thought-"

"Now that's just cruel," Mr. Sutcliff pouted. "But Ciel wants me to stay!" He leapt up off the ground, and slung an arm around Ciel's neck. "Right, m'boy?" His fingernails dug into the earl's flesh, threatening to call forth blood if not satisfied.

"Uh-"

"See? The boy wants me to stay!" Grell hopped into the nearest chair. "Please, don't mind me."

Sebastian looked at the earl. "Ciel-"

"Carry on," he sighed, waving him away. "Just ignore him."

"S-So... Er, Ciel," Ms. Mandel started, shooting nervous glances at the Shinigami donned in red. "A-About your dancing classes..."

He cringed. Here it comes...

"I'd like you to practice your dancing at home," Ms. Mandel said, "so you can raise your mark. R-Right now, your grade is at a fifty- three percent."

Ciel blanched. This was worse then he expected. Dance? At home? Using his free time? With who? "Ms. Mandel," he started, "who am I to dance with?"

Ms. Mandel looked surprised. "W-Why, didn't you hear? S-S-Sebastian has told me that he is very educated where the Viennese waltz is concerned."

Ciel was mortified. Dance? With a man? With Sebastian? _Again?_

"...That's not nessecary," he nearly pleaded. "I'll be fine on my own-"

"Yes, yes, the boy'll be fine on his own," Grell drawled, "However, I may need some personal lessons involving the Vienesse waltz and one Hell of a sexy de-"

"I apologize for interrupting your group discussion."

Three heads snapped towards the doorway.

"I am William. T. Spears, an administrator at the Grim Reaper Staffing Association." The Shinigami adjusted his glasses.

"Wiiiilll!" Grell whined. "Don't ruin my fun!"

Will turned towards Grell with a cold stare. "Grell Sutcliff , you have violated work regulations {yet again.} You have abandoned your post assigned to you to run off without a leave, and interfere with the lives of others', furthermore purposely imteracting with the likes of a demon. And," he said, his tone dropping fifty degrees below zero, "_You have made me work overtime_."

"Ooooooh, are you jealous, Will? Don't you like me mingling with demons?" Grell retorted, slinging an arm over Sebastian's shoulder, which was promptly removed by the demon.

"You've missed my entire point." he sighed, adjusting his glasses madly. "Grell Sutcliff, do you wish to be demoted again? We're leaving. Now."

"Will! Oh, Will! You're so cruel. Soooo cruel!" the Shinigami wailed, throwing his arms over his eyes. "What shall I do? Here I am, faced with the decision to leave my current lover to reunite with my ex! The very idea excites me! Should I go? Should I stay? Sebas-Chan!" he cried, grasping on to the other's collar. "What shall I do? Where should I go? Convince me to stay by your side!"

"William," the butler said calmly, straightening his suit, "control your lover."

"I'm afraid you are mistaken," Will said through clenched teeth. "This poor excuse for a Shinigami is not to be associated with me. Though," he amended, folding his hands around a portion of Grell's hair and yanking, "he is my responsibility, sadly." He adjusted his glasses.

Ms. Mandel finally regained her senses. "W-Who-"

"I apologize once again for the interruption. If you don't mind, I'll be on my way," Will said blandly.

"Bye bye now!" Grell waved as he was dragged out the door by his hair.

"I believe that is our cue," Sebastian sighed, standing up. "We're running late, Ciel. I haven't prepared dinner."

Ciel stood as well, making his way over to the door.

"Y-Yes, yes," Ms. Mandel said hurriedly, "C-Ciel, don't forget to practice your dancing!"

"Not to worry," Sebatian smirked, putting his young master into a headlock and mussing his hair. "We'll practice _all day long_, if that's what it takes. Right, Ciel?"

"..."

"Ciel?"

"... Yes..."

"Good day, Carry." He winked.

* * *

"That was too much excitement for one day, my lord," Sebastian muttered as they slipped into the car.

"You agreed to have me dance during my free time?!" Ciel snapped. "I don't recall issuing that command!"

"My, my, young master." The demon smirked. "It will be but a piece of cake- after all, if I fail to educate my inexperienced lord in the art of dancing, well then, what kind of butler would I be?"

"A bad one," Ciel answered. "It's impossible. I can't be bothered to dance."

"Is that a challenge, young master?" The demon's eyes glinted.

"No, it's a fact. You can't make me do anything. I'm in charge here," the earl proclaimed smugly.

"We'll see."

* * *

**A/N: La la lalalala sing a happy song!**


	6. Chapter 6 Life is Lovely

**DISCLAIMER: ****I own nothing. I make no money off of this piece of work****.**

**A/N: I had this half written for the LONGEST time, and only started to continue it yesterday. xD You have my most profuse apologies if the story starts to go sour halfway through-I am terribly out of practice. :P**

* * *

**Ciel In School**

**Chapter Six- Life is Lovely**

* * *

Ciel yawned, turning over in his half- asleep state. He knew that he had at least three more hours before he was required to get up and go to that godforsaken school for yet another day of torture. It was nice, just laying here in bed, awake, but not quite awake. He heard footsteps on the wooden floor, creaking closer and closer, but he didn't bother to open his eyes. Whatever it was, Sebastian could be trusted to take care of it...

"Bocchan," a voice lightly sang in his ear.

It was that demon, come to haunt him again. Ciel muttered something that more or less resembled, "Go away," and pulled the sheets over his head. He was too comfortable to move now...

A lazy chuckle waltzed its way across the room, and before the earl had a chance to protest, his blanket was crudely ripped out of his hands and onto the floor.

Ciel yelped at the sudden shock of cold settling in, and rose to glare at his butler. "What the f-"

"My lord, it is time to dance," Sebastian smiled, and grasped his small hands in his own gloved ones. Classical music resounded throughout the mansion, and all Ciel could think was that this was a dream; this _had_ to be a dream.

Sebastian swung Ciel off of the bed, depositing him on the floor. The earl, unprepared, crumpled into a spineless heap.

"What?" he yelled from his place on the floor. "Sebastian, I command you to-!" To his dismay, Ciel finally acknowledged one crucial part of his butler's outfit of choice for today: a pair of white fluffy earmuffs.

"I hate you." Ciel was forced to execute a turn.

"I'm afraid I'm having trouble hearing you, young master." Sebastian did not so much as wince as a barren foot was shoved unceremoniously into his shin.

"Can I sleep now?" The earl stumbled over his feet clumsily. Sebastian simply dipped his head so that he was eye to eye with the young master, the tips of his bangs brushing Ciel's nose, and the crook of his glasses slipping down slightly.

"You'll have to speak louder, young master," he teased with that infuriating smirk. "I can't hear you."

Fed up, Ciel reached for the earmuffs as if to rip them off the butler's person, but Sebastian was too clever. He caught the child's hands before they could reach their destination, and Ciel was spun across the room.

"Sebastian!" The earl was nearly in tears. "I've had enough!"

The demon ignored him and kept dancing.

* * *

"M- Mr. Sebastian! Oh, Mr. Sebastian!" Ms. Mandel waved her arms frantically. "I-I'm so glad I found you!" Sebastian raised an eyebrow. He had come to drop off Ciel at school for the day. He had only been at the school for a few minutes, and was already being sought out by women? Well, not like that was unordinary.

"P-Please, S-Sebastian, It's an emergency!" The teacher approached the pair gasping for breath. "M-My father- he suddenly collapsed at work," she explained. "I-I need to make sure he's alright! C-Can you _please_ watch over the class for the day? _P-Please_. I- It's urgent!"

"There is no need for worrying, Ms. Carry," Sebastian replied calmly. "I would only be too happy to take over your position for the day."

Ciel stared on, absolutely horrified.

"O-Oh, thank you," she huffed, "T-Thank goodness. I-I promise I'll pay you back somehow. T-Thank you!" she waved, and hastily exited the school.

"You... You..." Ciel couldn't speak. "_Why would you do that_?" He snapped. "You can't... A mere butler...!"

"It is my duty to help those in distress," Sebastian smirked. "Is it not?"

"Don't give me that. You're a demon! You don't volunteer to help someone unless it's beneficial to you! Unless," Ciel said slowly, "you chose to play teacher for a day because you'd get the opportunity to pester me while you're at it?" Sebastian said nothing. "So it's true!" he scowled.

"Come now, you and I will both be late for class if we continue at this rate," Sebastian said reasonably, heading towards Ciel's classroom.

"Stop! Argh! Sebastian!" Ciel tugged hopelessly at the back of his butler's suit. "Sebastian, I command you to-"

"Do that, young master, and I will only send Grell in my stead."

"I can order you _not_ to send Grell," the earl threatened.

"Yes, but you can't order _Grell_ around." The pair came to a stop just before the closed classroom door. "I won't interfere with your day," the demon said, smiling down at the boy. "You have my word."

Ciel only glared at him. "Liar," he scoffed, and pushed open the door.

The class had been alight with chatter before Sebastian had stepped in the room. Now, simply standing at the threshold of the room, everyone fell silent. Ciel hurried to his seat, resisting the urge to glance over at Sebastian. He really, really hoped that the butler wasn't showing off his demon eyes right now. The last thing he needed was his fellow students afraid of "Ciel Phantomhive The Third's psychotic guardian". Or... On second thought, maybe some fear could do him some good.

"Hey!" A voice called across the room. Ciel recognized Alois' whiny pitch. "Who are you?"

"Ms. Mandel is out for the day," Sebastian replied smoothly. "I am temporarily taking over her position. You may call me Mr. Michaelis."

Alois nodded slowly, like he was processing the newfound information. The earl blinked in surprise- he'd expected Alois to hoot, holler, and stir up trouble like he did with all the other supply teachers they'd come across. But then again, Sebastian was considerably intimidating.

"Oi! Ciel!" He turned. It was Bard.

"Ain't that the guy who takes care of yeh? Yer guardian or something?" He scratched his head.

"Not so loud!" Ciel snapped. "I'd rather not have everybody know that this man is familiar with me."

"Familiar in what way?" Mey poked at the earl. "Oooh, Ciel, won't you please introduce me to him?" She sighed longingly. "I've been searching for the right man to spend my life with, and this could be it! Mr. Sebastian is like the flawless gentleman- he and I would be perfect for each other, yes!"

Ciel stared at her. "He's got to be at least ten years older your senior," he pointed out. While his tone remained unrevealing, inside he was seething. The very thought of someone other than himself gaining power over _his_ butler made his blood boil. _He_ had made the contract with the demon; therefore the demon belonged to _him_. And with Sebastian, no one, nothing could possibly stand in his way...

"Hey," he hissed at Mey, who was gazing at the butler with dreamy eyes. "Stop ogling him!"

She pouted back. "Aw, but Ciel, what do you care? It's not like I'm hurting anyone." She giggled. "Besides, how can you not help but stare? Even though you're a guy, don't you find him a teensy bit attractive?"

"No," the earl forcibly raised his voice. "He's quite ugly, to be honest."

"Ms. Mey and Mr. Ciel Phantomhive." Sebastian was before them, smiling a dangerously sweet smile. "I would appreciate it if you could cease your acts of physiognomy."

Mey blushed and stammered a mess of an apology. Ciel simply swiveled his gaze to the other side of the room, and refused to make eye contact, much like a child.

"Now then," Sebastian continued, "We'll be starting the day with _math_," he proclaimed smartly, staring directly into Ciel's azure eyes, smirking all the while.

The boy cursed under his breath, displeased. Today was Wednesday; they weren't supposed to be having math! He raised his hand. "_Mr. Michaelis_," he said, nearing the brink of sarcasm, "we don't have first period math on Wednesdays. We have science."

"That is fine. Ms. Mandel has instructed me to begin with math. She believes that certain individuals will benefit from this... Extra lesson." The demon took pleasure from glorying in Ciel's discomfort.

"You're a liar," the earl muttered bitterly.

"Why don't you do us all a favor by coming up to the board and solving this problem?" Something in the butler's voice immediately made the question a demand, and Ciel was left with no choice but to comply.

He made his way slowly to the board, desperately attempting to solve the problem before he got there.

Unfortunately, no progress was made, and he found himself standing there all too soon with a piece of chalk in his hand.

"Well?" Sebastian knew he didn't have the answer, he _knew_, and yet he down at Ciel expectantly, feigning complete innocence.

But underneath that carefully structured, picture perfect, absolutely flawless, concerned teacher look hid an arrogant, infuriating, victorious smirk.

He scowled at that smirk, disliking its gloating demeanor. "I don't know the answer," he proclaimed quietly, not wanting to draw attention; he had more than he liked at the moment.

The earl heard someone snicker briefly, before Sebastian shot his "Look" at someone behind him, and then the snickering came to a rather sudden halt.

"I think," he said with a lopsided grin, "extra math homework would be of utmost advantage for you."

Ciel returned sourly to his seat, glowering at anything and everything that glance at him.

"Man, he likes to tease you, doesn't he?" Bard laughed gruffly.

"I fail to see the humor," the earl replied icily.

"Can't you see, Ciel? He just wants a reaction out of you. He's just joking. Stop being so serious, will ya?" Bard chuckled ruffling the other boy's hair. "Jeez. Take a break once in a while, okay?"

Ciel said nothing, as if he didn't exist.

By the time it was time for lunch, Ciel was famished. He shot a nervous glance at his demon counterpart, remembering in full detail when the butler had purposely forgotten his sustenance in order to lure him out.

He _did not_ feel like starving today.

Sebastian sauntered past his desk, smirking like the devil he was.

Hesitantly, he unzipped his blue polka- dotted lunch bag, and breathed a sigh of relief when he discovered that nothing appeared out of the ordinary.

As usual, Bard, Mey, and Finny insisted on sitting with him, which only embarrassed him further, as the demon gleefully witnessed what he had to suffer through each day.

Physical education rolled around, and Ciel effectively burned off 10 minutes of his gym time by changing into his gym clothes very, very slowly.

As soon as he walked out of the changing room, Sebastian snapped towards him, and several other tardy students. "Ten laps around the field; one for each minute you've taken," he ordered, not unkindly. This was the standard procedure Ms. Mandel usually followed, but a particular sparkle in his butler's eyes told him that he wouldn't be actually counting. At least, not for him, anyways.

Grinning faintly, he ran three.

By the time he finished the laps, his class had formed an intrusive huddle around the demon.

"Mr. Michaelis! Mr. Michaelis! I want to play dodge ball!" Alois' voice rang out above all the others, followed by many agreements. Dammit. He loathed dodge ball. The pure concept of someone whipping spherical- shaped objects at his body was far less than amusing. He preferred to linger near the back of the gym to avoid getting hit.

"Alright, alright. Alois, you be the captain of one team."

"Yes!"

"And... Hm, let's see..." Sebastian tilted his head, eyes searching for his little lordship.

Instinctively, Ciel ducked his head and shoved the closest unfortunate soul in front of him, as if he could hide from those prying eyes.

Sebastian was not hindered. "Ciel, you can be the other captain," he said pleasantly, nearly beaming at him.

The earl cursed his butler for being such a good goddamn actor. Well, two could play that game, and he wasn't about to lose. "Thank you, Mr. Michaelis!" he smiled up at him cheerfully. His act was sound. Being chosen as captain was considered to be a big deal, and many were vying for the position. He caught some of the nasty sneers that were thrown his way.

"You and you. Twenty laps each." Sebastian had seen them, and he coolly dealt out the punishments as he had seen fit. The guilty students paused, possibly thinking of protesting, but a Look from Sebastian sent the both of them running.

In the end, Ciel had chosen Bard, Mey, and Finny to be on his team, along with a number of other nameless students. He figured about half of his team looked pretty strong- the other half consisted of gangly boys and giggly girls.

Sebastian cleared his throat. "The rules will be as per usual. If you get hit, you're out. If you catch a ball someone has thrown, that person is out. No one is allowed past the red line. The last team standing, wins. Is that clear?" Nodding heads. "Good." The demon directed his stare so that it bore into Ciel's eyes. "You may begin."

"AAAAAAGGHHHH!" Alois sped towards the dodge balls at full speed, his long legs out matching anyone else's.

Ciel steeled himself, and tore away from the wall, willing himself not to get hit.

He managed to get his hands on the nearest spheroid, and immediately put it to use by catapulting it at Alois' head. He missed.

Ciel retreated, scrambling to the back of the gym, ammunition- less.

Bard was having a field day, joyfully hurling dodge balls left and right. Thankfully, he was actually hitting some of his targets.

Ciel took cover behind the bigger boy, finding that his bulky frame did not make for a bad shield. Bard laughed like a maniac on drugs, tossing him a ball. "Take yer shot. And don't you miss!"

Taking a deep breath, he whipped the ball at the nearest target- a tall, skinny boy with round glasses, only to watch as it fell a few feet short. He sighed, frustrated, as Bard's taunting laughter echoed in his ears.

"Y'need to get more muscle in those arms of yours, Ciel," he, snorted. "At this rate, we'll never- hey!"

The pair gaped as the dodge ball, with a sudden change of heart, reevaluated its destination and sprung up with renewed motivation on a sure pathway to the poor boy's face.

It connected with a small _crunch_, and with a yelp, the opponent was disqualified from the game.

Ciel turned to stare suspiciously at Sebastian, delicate eyebrows raised. The demon failed to meet his little lordship's questioning glare, though the ends of his lips tugged up in what could only be a sinister, knowing smile.

And that was enough for Ciel.

He snatched another dodge ball from the hands of a nameless student and projected it in the general direction of a girl, who was currently oblivious to his motives, full in the knowledge that Sebastian wouldn't dare let him down.

As expected, the ball abruptly swerved just in time to smack the girl somewhat cruelly in the stomach.

_How_ was Sebastian pulling this off? Ciel's eyesight was in tip- top shape - his butler made sure of that- and as far as he could tell, nothing was there to alter the ball's path.

The earl took up more ammunition, this time offered by Finny, who appeared to be regarding him with something akin to awe, and tossed it carelessly, not even remotely caring where it ended up. This time, he watched his demon, taking care to note every twitch, every vicissitude made to accommodate the task which Ciel had thrown upon him.

There was nothing.

Frowning, the earl duplicated his actions once more. There had to be _something_, unless his butler possessed telekinetic abilities that had been lost on him. Or had the demon had developed them recently? But no, that was highly improbable...

He tightened his gaze and redoubled his efforts. Ahhhh. There it was; a minuscule twinge of the finger, while the rest of Sebastian's features remained steady. What was the significance, though? What good did it do?

"Ciel!"

The boy snapped back to reality, only to witness one of those accursed spherical objects barreling unwaveringly towards him, impact imminent. Automatically, he threw up his hands, hoping to lessen the blow, but he needn't have worried.

The ball, as if it had gained a mind of its own, jerked away from him and achieved an impressive U- turn, betraying its previous owner by rendering him out.

Alois, the last survivor, whirled off the court with an astounding display of profanity, and was promptly rewarded with extra laps.

This time, Sebastian counted.

* * *

As soon as physical education was over, "Mr. Michaelis" had escorted them back to the classroom, having given them the rest of the time to gain ground on their homework.

"How'd you do it?" he asked. His and Sebastian's conversation went unnoticed in the classroom, the students having occupied themselves with meaningless drivel.

"I'm afraid you will need to elaborate on your inquiry, Ciel," the demon quipped. Too smugly, in perspective of the earl.

"That stunt in P.E. How did you manage to divert the dodge balls to their intended target with only a flick of the finger?" Ciel growled. It was killing him. He had to know.

Sebastian paused thoughtfully. "If I'm not mistaken, there was a time where, in order to attain access to a particular circus' belongings, the both of us were required to bypass the circus staff's scrutiny." He tilted his head. "Surely you must recall?"

Ciel sighed. This event had occurred more than several decades ago, and it was not his proudest moment. He had been forced to preform unreasonable, not to mention dangerous acts to acquire a job as a stunt boy at the big top. "That was when you flicked pebbles at me to keep me upright on a tightrope," he scowled, still resentful. "Whenever I started to topple, you pelted me with pebbles from the opposite side to keep me perpendicular."

"Correct." Sebastian's eyes were twinkling again. So he, too, was capable of reminiscing. "I had also used the same method when you attempted to throw those absurdly small daggers at a target."

"So, today... You used a similar concept?" Ciel was beginning to piece it out. "But what did you use? There were no pebbles on hand- not in a gymnasium."

The butler dismissed this with a casual wave of his hand, and the breeze resulted caused the earl's bangs to shift ever so slightly. "_Air_," he breathed, albeit slightly amazed. "You directed _air_ at the projectiles to veer them off course? Why couldn't you do that in the circus?" he snapped. It would have saved him an abundance of pain, no less.

"Substantial weight difference," Sebastian pointed out. "You are heavier; therefore it was imperative for me to use an object with more mass than air."

"Ha," Ciel scoffed. "You come up with excellent reasons to cause me irritation, I'll give you that."

It was then that Alois Trancy chose to stroll by the two, stopping directly in front of Ciel so that they were face- to- face. Or face to shoulders, in the shorter boy's case.

"I want to congratulate you on your victory for today's dodge ball game," the blond boy said sincerely. His mouth was open in a friendly smile, but his eyes told a different story.

The earl immediately bristled. He felt Sebastian's presence make itself more pronounced, as if he wanted to remind Alois that he existed as well. "Your gesture of sportsmanship is appreciated," he replied stiffly.

If possible, Alois' smirk only grew wider. "Thank you. Have a nice day, _Mr. Michaelis_." The other boy flounced off.

Ciel looked after him with narrowed eyes. Alois was not pleased- obviously. Would the boy add fire to the feud because of something as petty as a game? The Alois of the past had not been rational, and he suspected that this one was no better.

And just how much did the boy know? The way he had looked at Sebastian... It was too shady, too sharp, too {clever} to be overlooked.

He glanced at the demon, and found that the demon's eyes were exceptionally dark, the scarlet red color glinting menacingly after Alois Trancy III.

_History repeats itself._

* * *

**A/N:**** Ssssssssssssssssssssssssssss sssssssssssssssnake ~ ^.^**


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